A Guyed Support Structure for OWT Installations in Intermediate Water Depths

Abstract

The study provides insights on the design and seismic response of a novel support structure for large capacity offshore wind turbines. In the proposed scheme, the lateral stability of the turbine tower is provided by a taut mooring system comprising of four pre-stressed tendons anchored to the seabed by means of suction caissons. To facilitate installation, a single pinned connection is implemented at the tower base, which is founded on a circular shallow footing. By eliminating the moment transfer at the tower foundation, the system’s design requirements are substantially reduced. Compared to conventional solutions, the proposed system offers the necessary support without resorting to massive and difficult to construct foundations. To demonstrate its efficacy, the system’s performance is investigated under concurrent environmental and seismic loading. The NOWITECH 10MW reference wind turbine, installed in a water depth of 50 m in the seismically active region of the North-Western Adriatic, is used as benchmark. © 2021 by the International Society of Offshore and Polar Engineers (ISOPE).